Decoded in ‘Formation’: Beyonce’s Powerful–and Profitable–Tour Legacy

During Super Bowl 50, Beyoncé performed along with Coldplay and Mark Ronson, and after her performance an ad announced her first headlining stadium tour this year that will begin in the summer with 40 stops. Called “Formation,” the world tour is set to begin April 27. As the hysteria builds among fans and the Amex pre-sale begins next week, we take a look at Beyoncé’s star-studded, lucrative tour history and the high points of some of her biggest shows.

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THE MRS. CARTER SHOW WORLD TOUR

Announced in February 2013, the tour had six legs and 132 shows, beginning in Belgrade, Serbia, on April 15, 2014 and concluded in Lisbon, Portugal, on March 27 of the same year. It featured royal themes, which the platinum-selling singer and actress channeling imagery of queens, collaborating with international designers and luxe fashion houses. She performed songs from all four studio albums of her solo career, and later shows incorporated tracks from her fifth studio album, Beyoncé.

Tickets for this tour sold out almost immediately after they were released and the tour reportedly grossed $188.6 million in 2013 and $41.1 million in 2014, bringing the tour’s total gross revenue to more than $229 million. It was the highest grossing female and solo tour of 2013, Beyoncé’s highest grossing tour to date and one of the highest grossing tours of the decade.